And yet you seem to be wagging your finger at me because I have "excess" money.

Yeah, I guess I should have whizzed away my money on new cars and cell phones and cable TV. Then I would not have all that "excess".

The government is not "paying" people by allowing them to deduct their losses. The government is taxing INCOME, and income simply IS a total of gains AND losses. Calling that "paying" people is just a completely bizarre way to look at it.